17-05-2016, 05:36 PM
Just keep it dry. Woodworm can't survive when the moisture content falls below a certain level - can't remember the numbers, but in a heated house, it'll soon dry out to comfortably below that level.
They can live in the timber for 3 to 5 years before emerging. I'm unconvinced of the need for/effectiveness of chemicals. We had some in the cellar when we first moved in, but I've not seen any emerging in the last few years. In that time, as a result of sorting out ventilation, the cellar has dried out and the timbers are now close to normal moisture level. The timbers were allegedly treated previously, but that didn't stop them when the cellar was unventilated. And I haven't wasted time treating the timbers since moving in, yet the problem has gone. As the young people say, "go figure"
I'd have no qualms about bringing that set into the house to dry. I wouldn't even bother bagging it. Any beetles that emerge need to find a mate, and then a suitable place to lay their eggs, and they won't find anywhere in a normally heated house - they'll be straight out the window to find a decaying bit of tree in the garden. People have an irrational fear of "infestations", mostly caused by the timber treatment industry.
They can live in the timber for 3 to 5 years before emerging. I'm unconvinced of the need for/effectiveness of chemicals. We had some in the cellar when we first moved in, but I've not seen any emerging in the last few years. In that time, as a result of sorting out ventilation, the cellar has dried out and the timbers are now close to normal moisture level. The timbers were allegedly treated previously, but that didn't stop them when the cellar was unventilated. And I haven't wasted time treating the timbers since moving in, yet the problem has gone. As the young people say, "go figure"
I'd have no qualms about bringing that set into the house to dry. I wouldn't even bother bagging it. Any beetles that emerge need to find a mate, and then a suitable place to lay their eggs, and they won't find anywhere in a normally heated house - they'll be straight out the window to find a decaying bit of tree in the garden. People have an irrational fear of "infestations", mostly caused by the timber treatment industry.
